Angel Food Ministries is a non-profit organization with the goal of helping you stretch your food budget dollars with high quality food. I was reluctant to try this program but to my surprise, I will be a return customer. The service provided top quality products, especially the meat items, offering a great variety in my family’s diet.

***UPDATE***Angel Food Ministries ceased operations in September, 2011

Food boxes are $30, normal retail of $60 to over $70 retail locally.

Although I don’t concur that it feeds a family of 4 for a week, it does provide the majority of dinner for a family of 4 for a week and breakfast for 4 days. That is only $4 per dinner for a family of 4 or $1 EACH.

History:

Angel Food Ministries was established in 1994 with the goal of helping those struggling in Georgia. Since then, 500,000 families in 37 states purchase Angle Food every month. Angel Food Ministries is a non-profit, non-denominational organization with the objective of providing food relief to everyone in the United States. Food boxes are available to anyone, regardless of income.

How to Use Angel Food Ministries:

First, you must place your order. The Angel Food website will easily direct you to the closest location. Submit your order and payment with cash, money order, or food stamps by the deadline, which is usually the 2nd week of the month. You will receive a receipt to take with you on pick up day. If you do not show up on pick up day, your food will be donated to charity.

On pick up day, bring your receipt and a cooler, box, or laundry basket to pick up your food. The food will be organized on tables with volunteers placing your food in your basket. You will receive the next month’s menu with your food.

The Food:

There are multiple boxes from which to choose. The Regular Box is $30 providing top quality food from every food group. One box of food is intended to feed a family of four for about a week. The Senior / Convenience Box is intended to feed one person for an entire month. This box contains 10 heat & serve balanced fully cooked meals and 10 desserts. Once you purchase a Regular or Senior Box, you may purchase as many special boxes as you wish. Recent examples include a six pound Assorted Meat for $22, a four-pound Steak Combo for $21, and a Fresh Fruit & Veggie box of around 18lb for $21. Special boxes change monthly.

Compared to Local Grocery Prices:

The food is purchased in bulk from wholesalers and restaurant suppliers, enabling Angel Food to offer. The $30 regular box is equal to $60 retail-priced food. I did the math on this month’s food at Giant Eagle and it totaled $72.25. I was very impressed with the selection of meat in the box including chicken fajita meat, a whole chicken, frozen ground turkey, beef steaks, beef ribeye, and pork riblets. The side items of cheese manicotti, corn muffin mix, rice & pasta, corn tortillas, peas, pinto beans, milk, and eggs were very good as well. The frozen broccoli was disappointing as there were only 4 small pieces of broccoli crown and the rest steams. The cookies were bland and boring. Overall, it was well worth the price of just $30, even if just for the meat alone. I plan to reorder the regular box and add the Frozen Sides & Fixin’s next month.

The frozen broccoli was disappointing as there were only four small pieces of broccoli crowns and the rest steams. The cookies were bland and boring. Overall, it was well worth the price of just $30, even if just for the meat alone. I plan to reorder the regular box and add the Frozen Sides & Fixin’s next month.

The Servant Magazine:

Each order includes a copy of "The Servant" magazine. This magazine features menu ideas for next month’s food order, reports from host sites, testimonials, and inspirational articles. Many people give their magazine away to friends and family to advertise Angel Food Ministries and how they too can save money on groceries.

Finding Locations:

There are many, many Angel Food host locations throughout northeastern Ohio, including 65 within 50 miles of downtown Cleveland.